Mexicali security operations result in arrests of drug suspects and former police officer

State security forces in Mexicali detained four individuals on June 30 after stopping a Toyota Corolla in the Benito Juárez ejido. A bag containing 30 packets of a methamphetamine‑like substance was found, and the suspects – identified as Julio Ezequiel, Ignacio, Yurem and Saraí – are alleged to belong to a narcotics cell operating in the Valle de Mexicali. Authorities suspect a possible link to the recent killings of two state police officers, Rubén López Orduño and Manuel Enrique Guerrero Sánchez, in late June.

In a separate operation on the same day, former Mexicali municipal police officer Juan Israel, 41, was captured in the Quintas del Rey district carrying an unlawful firearm. He is under investigation for property damage, obstruction of authorities and possible ties to organized‑crime groups that operate along the border. Both cases were transferred to the corresponding state and federal prosecutors for further legal action.